The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) announced yesterday that it would investigate the exhaust emissions of Volkswagen AG (VW) vehicles in Taiwan after diesel-fueled cars sold by the company in the US were found to have software that could cheat emissions tests.
The agency said the diesel model in question was made specifically to meet US emissions standards and is not available in Taiwan.
The VW diesel models sold in Taiwan are manufactured according to the EU’s environmental laws and regulations, the agency said.
However, the agency said it had issued official documentation to the company’s Taiwan branch on Tuesday to ascertain whether such software was installed in cars sold in Taiwan, adding that it conducted random emission tests on VW models on Tuesday.
The agency said it would conduct further random testing on VW models and would order VW to recall defective models if similar software is found, adding that the firm faces a NT$10,000 fine for each problematic car sold.
VW Taiwan said it would cooperate with the agency and it had requested its German headquarters and the former Taiwan franchiser to examine whether models sold in Taiwan are affected, which could take some time.
VW Taiwan said it would recall problematic models if necessary.
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